Worm Injections

pads:
melt 2% agarose in water, keep molten at 42oC
use 25mm x 25mm or larger microscope slides
spread out microscope slides onto a heat resistant glass or metal tray
using a pasteur pipet, put a small drop of agarose on to a slide and immediately cover it with another slide, pushing down
do several slides this way
wait a few minutes until agarose is solid and gently pry off apart the slides
use the free (unbroken) slides as bottoms and continue until the tray is full
when all the slides are uncovered, bake them at 80oC for several hours
store them in a covered dish or box

needles:
use glass blanks made for injection needles
use David Kopf pipet puller
switch is on back
take care that the filament is centered
ours: set to 9.7

etching needles:
use the discarded lid of a worm plate
put a drop of water and a drop of hydroflouric acid onto lid
put 50 lbs. of pressure through needle as you pass the needle back and forth from acid to water
hold needle no more than a second or so in each
once it has begun to bubble in water pass it once more back to acid and then to water